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Multiple-Meaning Words

A multiple-meaning word is spelled and said the same way but means different things: a bat flies at night, and you hit a ball with a bat. Context is the only clue, which is why these words are such good reading practice.

Here are 124 multiple-meaning words from past ClueBy puzzles, each with a real example sentence for every meaning. Use them as a reference, or make a printable worksheet below.

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Students read each sentence and write the missing word. Every word appears in several sentences, each time with a different meaning.

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Word bank
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Multiple-Meaning Words

Name: ____________________Date: __________

Write the missing word from the word bank in each sentence. Each word is used more than once, with a different meaning each time.

Word bank: bay · wind · face · saw · leaves · object · rush · stock

  1. She's very handy with a ________________.
  2. He always ________________ the window open while he sleeps.
  3. She had a strange look on her ________________.
  4. The ________________ market has crashed.
  5. The ________________ change colour in autumn.
  6. Close the lid of the trash can to keep odors and pests at ________________.
  7. The strong ________________ blew his hat off.
  8. You shouldn't ________________ things.
  9. Sooner or later you'll have to ________________ the truth.
  10. The sailing ship dropped anchor in the ________________.
  11. We ________________ that the plan would end in failure.
  12. My mare is ________________ in color.
  13. Why would I ________________ to a disabled ramp?
  14. Take your time. There's no ________________.
  15. A valuable ________________ decreases in value if it is damaged.
  16. He works in a ________________ mill.
  17. What's the difference between broth and ________________?
  18. The train ________________ at six o'clock.
  19. He sold his goods at a loss to ________________ up his business.
  20. That must've been a ________________.
  21. It was raining hard, and to make things worse, the ________________ was beginning to rise.
  22. Thanks to his efforts, he attained his ________________.
  23. Our bedroom windows ________________ the sea.
  24. The supermarket has a large ________________ of merchandise.

Sentences from ClueBy, Tatoeba (CC BY 2.0 FR) and Common Voice (CC0). clueby.com

Answer key

  1. saw — the tool
  2. leaves — lets stay
  3. face — part of the head
  4. stock — shares
  5. leaves — of a tree
  6. bay — to keep at bay
  7. wind — moving air
  8. rush — to hurry
  9. face — to confront
  10. bay — a part of the sea
  11. saw — past of 'see'
  12. bay — a horse colour
  13. object — to protest
  14. rush — hurry
  15. object — a thing
  16. saw — the tool
  17. stock — a soup base
  18. leaves — to go away
  19. wind — to turn a key
  20. rush — a thrill
  21. wind — moving air
  22. object — an aim
  23. face — to point toward
  24. stock — goods

Multiple-meaning words list

Tick up to 10 words to build a worksheet with just those words.

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Frequently asked questions

What are multiple-meaning words?

Words with the same spelling and pronunciation but more than one meaning, like bark (of a dog or of a tree) or bank (for money or of a river). You can only tell which meaning is meant from the rest of the sentence.

Are multiple-meaning words the same as homonyms?

Mostly, yes. Teachers often use "multiple-meaning words" and "homonyms" for the same idea. Homophones are different: they sound alike but are spelled differently, like flour and flower.

Are the worksheets free?

Yes. Make and print as many as you like for home or classroom use. Each sheet has its own link, so you can print the same one again.

Where do the words come from?

From past ClueBy puzzles, a daily game where you sort twelve sentences by their missing word. A new puzzle every day adds four more words to this list.

Sentences from ClueBy, Tatoeba (CC BY 2.0 FR) and Common Voice (CC0). clueby.com